At the 2020 Grammys, Finneas achieved a remarkable feat by winning six honors for his work on his baby sister Billie Eilish’s debut album. This made him the most awarded artist of the night. Meanwhile, the Attacca Quartet also won their first Grammy for best chamber performance on their album Orange, and interestingly, the two acts were completely unaware of each other. Years later, they came together to create the music for Apple TV+’s Disclaimer, an acclaimed thriller starring Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Kodi Smit-McPhee. The musicians worked seamlessly together and even collaborated on Eilish’s latest album, Hit Me Hard and Soft.

At the Grammy Museum: A Childhood Connection

The Los Angeles-born Finneas and Eilish attended youth programs at the Grammy Museum throughout their childhood. Here, the Oscar-winning composer and the string quartet (Amy Schroeder, Andrew Yee, Nathan Schram, Domenic Salerni) discuss their collaboration on the TV series and how Eilish’s album was partly inspired by it.

When Did You All First Meet?

When Finneas was working on the show, the reference music Alfonso was sending him was mainly classical music like Bach and Vivaldi. As he didn't have a classical background, it was a new and exciting experience. Composer David Campbell suggested using the Attacca Quartet, which Finneas was unfamiliar with. But Alfonso was very enthusiastic about them. Once they started recording, Finneas was amazed by how they transformed the music. He had been writing some string parts for the Billie album and thought it would be a great opportunity if they could work on it. Andrew Yee humorously responded with "You’re welcome." Finneas further added that the difference between the MIDI versions and the actual musicians playing was truly amazing. Nathan Schram also shared their fear of not living up to the MIDI.

Working on Disclaimer: Adding Music to a Strong Scene

There were many rounds of feedback in the process of adding music to the scenes. Finneas would turn in a first draft, and Alfonso would provide his feedback, which led to a back-and-forth. Finneas compared it to his other creative relationships with Billie, where she would also express her likes and dislikes. The scope of the show was large, and there were many pieces of music to make. Sometimes, Finneas would be unsure if his work was good enough, but he always knew Alfonso's style would be loud. There were also scenes where Finneas scored something that might not have been needed, or vice versa. He remembered scoring a couple of Hail Mary scenes but couldn't recall specific examples.

Composing Music for TV vs. Other Forms

Finneas explained that making an album is about expressing one's feelings, while composing for TV is about creating something that fits into a different universe. He categorized making the Barbie song with Billie in one camp and the James Bond song in another. He emphasized that each piece of music should fit the scene and not be just a random song. If a song doesn't fit, it should be saved for later. He also shared an experiment about ceramicists where making multiple pots led to more symmetrical ones, which made him rethink his work approach.

Creating Billie's Latest Album

For Billie's latest album, they wanted to reinvent the wheel. Their first album did extremely well, and during the pandemic, they had a lot of time to work on it. The second album became their salvation. Finneas mentioned that while making the album, he was also working on the TV show Disclaimer in the background. The string overture in the album was inspired by the show. Andrew Yee shared that it was an amazing experience to listen to the music before anyone else and be a part of it. He also recalled a memorable moment when the beat dropped in "The Greatest" and he couldn't contain his excitement.This story appeared in the Dec. 13 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.